An example of the flow of the testing steps included in the semiconductor device producing steps executed after forming a semiconductor element circuit on a wafer is mainly shown in FIG. 12, taking a packaged product, a bare chip and a CSP providing a representative form of shipment of the semiconductor device.
The tests conduced in the semiconductor device producing process are roughly divided into three as shown in FIG. 12, including a wafer test which is conducted on a wafer formed with a semiconductor element circuit and an electrode thereon to determine the conduction and the electrical signal operation of the semiconductor elements, a burn-in test for picking out an unstable semiconductor element at a high temperature or under a high applied voltage, and a select test for the product performance before shipment of the semiconductor device.
A conventional device (semiconductor test device) used for these tests of the semiconductor device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,461,326. The technique described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,461,326 is implemented by a self-horizontalization thin film test probe comprising a thin film support frame, a flexible thin film fixed on the support frame, a plurality of test probe contactors arranged in the central area of the outer surface of the thin film in such a manner as to apply pressure on a contact pad of the device to be tested, a plurality of conductive traces on the thin film for connecting each probe contactor to a test circuit, and a means (including a pressure plate fixed on the inner surface of the thin film in the central area and a pivot post with a hemispherical head for applying pressure pivotally to the center of the pressure plate) for automatically rotating the central area of the thin film under the pressure applied by the probe test contactor onto the contact pad of the device to be tested.
Another conventional technique is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,305,230. U.S. Pat. No. 6,305,230 discloses a technique implemented by a connecting device including a support member, a multilayer film having a plurality of contact terminals with a sharp tip arranged in the probing-side area thereof and a ground layer with a plurality of lead wires electrically connected and led to each contact terminal through an insulating layer, a frame fixed on the reverse side of the multilayer film, a holding member, a contact pressure application means for applying the contact pressure to the holding member from the support member to bring the tip of each contact terminal into contact with each electrode, and a compliance mechanism for projecting the tip surfaces of the contact terminals in parallel along the surface of the electrodes when the tip surfaces of the contact terminals are brought into contact with the surfaces of the electrodes, and an test system for conducting the test by electrically connecting the connecting device brought into contact with the electrodes of the test object.